A Tortured Future
by StarlightNinjaThief
Summary: Tag to epi 1x22, Pandora. *spoilers for the season finale*


**_AN: Since ya'll liked the last h/c that I did, here's another one._**

Taking count of all her injuries from the last two days alone, Michael wished he had done more than just knock Percy unconscious. Nikita was the strongest woman he knew and he'd seen her hurt on old ops during their recruit days but not this much. And not so emotionally drained. Though he assumed they all were after this. They hadn't killed Percy and sure, they were still on the run, but they'd succeeded in knocking Division down a peg. Now they were driving, just driving far away.

He hadn't slept in who knows how long but he had to get them far enough away for safety. Tomorrow Michael and Nikita would be traveling to the other side of the Earth to hideout under different identities; with the help of Shadownet covering their tracks.

These last few weeks Nikita had worried that Alex or himself would be hurt or have their covers blown. And now Alex had turned her back and Nikita had also lost her home from the last three years. None of them kept much in way of possessions but he knew she kept a few things besides clothes. Just like he kept things of his daughter's. He knew, before they'd gotten together, that he hurt Nikita when he ordered her to find Kassim. That he heard her tears as he walked out. Gut-wrenching sobs and he hoped to keep her from going back to that.

But Michael had his own demons too. Finding out Percy had killed his family, being told Nikita was _dead_ and then facing the devil himself. His mind and heart were in constant conflict; unsure of what to process first. When he'd stormed into that office he had every intention of killing the man where he stood. _Lord knows he did._ The punches he threw when he jumped over the desk, throwing Percy down and choking him, Michael saw red. His anger seeping out into his hands. But then the flash of Nikita's lifeless body was before his eyes, grip tightening. And suddenly, he let go. Not out of loyalty to the crooked agency like Percy thought, but to Nikita. She was dead from what Birkhoff had told him but that little voice inside his head told him to get out. To find her and make sure. And if she was then he'd go back and get revenge _his way_.

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><p>Michael was pulled out of his reverie by a soft whimper and shifting of the covers beside him in the motel bed. The'd pulled over, both needing a few hours sleep. Just enough to keep going at the crack of dawn. He made Nikita sit on the bed so he could examine her injuries. And the fact she did so willingly and allowed him to bandage her up, told him his girl was nearly done for. They were both so exhausted he just wanted to hold her and keep her safe.<p>

Nikita gasped, pulling violently out of her nightmare. The one where she nearly died yesterday morning. For a full minute she couldn't move, could barely breathe, eyes darting around frantically as she lay paralyzed. It was like she was drugged all over again. _Bruising to her chest where the bullets hit the kevlar, three broken ribs, raw wrist just like Michael's._Another whimper turned into a muffled cry and Michael turned onto his side.

Hand hovering lightly above her shoulder — not touching until she could fully wake and feel it — the man called her name.

"Nikita, c'mon, wake up. Just breathe, you're alright, he doesn't have you. It's me, Michael." He continued talking in soft but firm tones; watching as she blinked away the fog. "I'm right here, Nikita."

When Nikita could draw a full breath again, she curled into her boyfriend's chest. Trying to hold back the tears though it wasn't working. They'd been through so many situations and the young woman had been alone for so long but when Roan was standing over her body, her muscles frozen, she'd never been so terrified.

"Oh, Michael," she sobbed.

He held her to him, being gentle of her sides and threaded his fingers through her hair.

"I couldn't breath. He - he had me and I - the needle...God, I was _scared_."

"Shh, shh, I've got you now. You're safe, we're both safe."

Looking up Nikita noticed Michael's eyes shimmer with tears. He nearly experienced the pain of losing the one he loved again. "I love you," she whispered against his lips.

"I love you too, baby," he answered just as quietly.

Foreheads resting together, they just stared until the couple drifted back into sleep. Both clutching the other; for safety or security - the line had blurred long ago.

_Nikita and Michael couldn't plan for the future anymore; didn't know if Percy would find them. All they had in this moment was each other. Two broken, tortured souls trying to complete the other. And it brought an odd sense of comfort once they realized that._

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><p><strong>AN: Hope everyone liked it.<strong>


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